Device Capabilities by Tier
Each hardware tier has different capabilities, which determine what the node can do on the network and how it earns MHR.
Capability Matrix
| Capability | Minimal | Community | Gateway | Backbone | Inference |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Packet relay | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| LoRa transport | Yes | Yes | Yes | Optional | No |
| WiFi transport | No | Yes | Yes | Yes (directional) | Optional |
| Cellular transport | No | No | Yes | No | No |
| Ethernet/Fiber | No | No | Optional | Yes | Yes |
| MHR-Byte contracts | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| WASM contracts | No | Light | Full | Full | Full |
| MHR-Store storage | No | ~16 GB | ~256 GB | ~1 TB | ~512 GB |
| MHR-DHT participation | Minimal | Yes | Backbone | Backbone | Yes |
| Epoch consensus | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Internet gateway | No | No | Yes | Optional | Optional |
| ML inference | No | No | No | No | Yes |
| Gossip participation | Full | Full | Full | Full | Full |
| Payment channels | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Power and Deployment
| Tier | Power Draw | Power Source | Typical Deployment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Minimal | 0.5W | Solar + LiPo | Outdoor, pole/tree-mounted |
| Community | 3W | USB wall adapter | Indoor, near window for LoRa |
| Gateway | 10W | 12V supply | Indoor, weatherproof enclosure |
| Backbone | 25W+ | Mains + UPS | Indoor, rack-mounted or desktop |
| Inference | 100W+ | Mains | Indoor, rack or desktop |
Earning Potential
What each tier naturally earns from:
Minimal (ESP32 + LoRa)
- Packet relay fees only
- Low per-packet revenue but high volume and zero operating cost (solar)
- Value: extends mesh range, maintains connectivity
Community (Pi Zero + LoRa + WiFi)
- Bridging fees (LoRa ↔ WiFi translation)
- Basic compute delegation
- Small-scale storage
- Value: connects LoRa mesh to local WiFi network
Gateway (Pi 4/5 + Cellular)
- Internet gateway fees (highest per-byte revenue)
- Storage fees
- Compute fees
- Epoch consensus participation
- Value: connects mesh to the wider internet
Backbone (Mini PC + Directional WiFi)
- High-volume transit routing
- Large-scale storage
- Full compute services
- Value: high-bandwidth links between mesh segments
Inference (GPU Workstation)
- ML inference fees (highest per-invocation revenue)
- Heavy compute services
- Value: provides advanced capabilities to the entire mesh
Delegation Patterns
Since nodes delegate what they can't do locally, natural delegation chains form:
Minimal relay
→ delegates everything except routing to →
Community bridge
→ delegates bulk storage and internet to →
Gateway node
→ delegates heavy compute to →
Inference node
Each delegation is a bilateral capability agreement with payment flowing through channels.